Toondah Harbour plan raises donations questions

By Richard Carew

Updated6 December 2016 — 11:50amfirst published at 11:01am

A controversial state government-backed proposal to build 3600 apartments over the top of protected wetlands near the North Stradbroke Island ferry departure point at Cleveland, also known as Toondah Harbour, has the potential to damage the Palaszczuk government's integrity in the lead-up to the next state election.

The proposal raises questions about publicly owned assets, political donations, protection of Moreton Bay, and the use of Newman government 'Priority Development Area' legislation. Before it was elected Labor attacked the Newman/Seeney PDA law empowering the deputy premier as "an outrageous abuse and concentration of power", accusing the LNP of wanting to give away assets "to its developer mates".

The developer and primary beneficiary of the Moreton Bay scheme, the Walker Corporation, has a history of making large donations to the ALP, including in New South Wales when it was lawful.

Queensland voters oppose the sale of public assets. How will they view the Palaszczuk government's plan to give away publicly owned land and protected wetlands on Brisbane's doorstep to a donor developer? Labor plans to allow Walker Corp to dredge and "reclaim" over 40 hectares/100 acres of Moreton Bay and construct 10-storey apartment buildings and a 400-berth marina. An estimated population of 7000 to 10,000 people is larger than most Queensland towns.

The wetlands form part of the Moreton Bay Ramsar site, a haven for threatened populations of dugongs, turtles, dolphins and migratory birds, including the critically endangered eastern curlew which inhabits the Toondah wetlands. The Queensland government website acknowledges the purpose of the international Ramsar Convention, "is to halt the worldwide loss of wetlands and to conserve remaining wetlands through wise use and careful management".

Walker Corp had a similar proposal near Hobart knocked back in 2010 after it became apparent that migratory bird habitat would be destroyed and dredge spoil and other pollution would likely impact a Ramsar wetlands site 12 kilometres away. The Toondah Harbour PDA plan, involving actual destruction of Ramsar wetlands, originated under the Newman government. But in June, 2015, instead of repealing the legislation as expected, or revoking the Toondah PDA, Deputy Premier Jackie Trad announced Labor would continue with it. The LNP's plan included around 800 apartments. The substantially enlarged 3600 apartment proposal under Labor quietly emerged in late November 2015.

As a result of ICAC investigations, developer donations are now banned in NSW. They remain lawful in Queensland but the public mood against corporate donations was reflected recently by the National Australia Bank which told a Senate Inquiry into political donations that it had stopped giving money to political parties "to be clean" and to avoid public perceptions of impropriety or graft.

The eastern curlew.

The state government and the Redland City Council have said the Toondah proposal is necessary to provide jobs for sand miners when mining ends on North Stradbroke Island in 2019. The Redlands Mayor claimed in an interview broadcast by the ABC in March this year that there were 650 resident miners on Stradbroke who needed "to find other ways of feeding their families". But this outrageously false claim was finally exposed by the media recently, with Sibelco admitting that it employs 41 Island resident sand miners.

There will be jobs on the island for many years rehabilitating three mine sites and eliminating foxes and other pests and weeds in accordance with mining company obligations. The state government has also promised to create 150 jobs on the Island. The Stradbroke Island jobs justification for the proposal is non-existent.

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Labor is likely to come under increasing pressure to justify continuing with the Toondah plan. It is unnecessary and irresponsible. All that is required, and it's not urgent, is a modest upgrade to the Stradbroke ferry terminal. Although subject to approval under the federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, the Palaszczuk government will have difficulty convincing people to blame the Federal government if the reclamation of protected wetlands goes ahead. This tactic is now well known and is unlikely to work with state government backed proposals like the Toondah Harbour PDA. Labor is in the best position to stop it, and isn't Labor supposed to protect the environment better than the Liberal/Nationals?

Richard Carew is a lawyer and member of the Friends of Stradbroke Island.